Burrillville High School, located at 425 East Avenue Harrisville, Rhode Island, is the home to approximately 899 students in grades 9 through 12. Although upon first appearance Burrillville High looks simple and slightly dated, in 2003 the school underwent renovations that transformed the dark and worn interior into a bright, friendly, and stimulating environment. Greeting students, faculty, staff, and visitors entering the building is a fountain in the center of a beautifully colorful garden. Within the garden are plaques engraved with all the names of teachers who have dedicated their careers to the Burrillville school system and have since retired. This garden, besides honoring those who have made contributions to the school and community, serves as a reminder for the students as to how important education is and what can be made of a life filled with hopes, dreams, and the desire to succeed. (Burrillville School Department, 2004).
The contents of this report includes detailed information about Burrillville as a community, the Burrillville school district, and Burrillville High School. The community background portion provides readers with a brief history of the location of Burrillville within Rhode Island, the population and size of the town, average family size and income, and percentages of race and diversity within the town. Under the school district summary one can find information concerning teacher-student ratios, number of students within the district, and various pieces of information about the families within the district compared to families within the state of Rhode Island. The last category, the school analysis, highlights Burrillville student tests scores compared to students throughout Rhode Island. Such tests in comparison include the SATs and the SALT surveys. All of this information, besides being useful for common knowledge and general interest, can be helpful for new teachers searching for a comfortable district, parents looking for the best education for their children, and students acting as student teachers and are seeking information concerning the school they are assigned.
Community Background
The town of Burrillville is located in the most northwest corner of the state of Rhode Island. Burrillville has a total population of 15,796, which is relatively small considering the town is comprised of 58 square miles (U.S. Census, 2000). Compared with the state of Rhode Island, which has a population of 1,057,832, Burrillville contains 1.49% of the entire state's population (U.S. Census, 2000). The town dates back to the Industrial Revolution and has an extensive history. What was once a mill town has now been transformed into a close-knit community in which many chose to remain once they become adults. (Town of Burillville, 2006)
Burrillville fits the stereotype of most small, rural communities in that many citizens do not experience great wealth, but make enough to live comfortably with reasonable luxuries. The average family income is $58,979 per year and the average family size is 3.15. Burrillville's income rate was low when compared to Rhode Island's average family income rate of $64,733, while Burrillville's average family size is high considering that the average family size of Rhode Island was 3.07 in 2000.When comparing Burrillville's per capita income with that of the state, Burrillville comes up slightly short once again. The per capita income for Burrillville in 1999 was reported as $21,096 while Rhode Island's per capita income in 1999 was higher at $21,688. Although the income rates of Burrillville may be lower than that of the entire state, the rates of families and individuals below poverty level in Burrillville is low when compared to the poverty level within Rhode Island. In Burrillville, 3.7% of families are below poverty level while 7.8% are below level in the state. The individual rate below poverty level within Burrillville rises correspondingly with the rate within Rhode Island showing 6.1% compared to 11.1% respectively. (U.S. Census, 2000)
Income/Poverty Level
Burrillville
Rhode Island
US
Median Household Income
$52,587
$51,814
$48,451
Median Family Income
$58,979
$64,733
$58,526
Per Capita Income
$21,096
$21,688
$25,267
Family Below Poverty Level
3.7%
7.8%
9.2%
Individual Below Poverty Level
6.1%
11.1%
12.4%
Of Burrillville's population that is 18 years or older 80.4% have graduated high school, which exceeds the percentage of the state which comes in with having 78% graduated high school. Of the 80.4% graduated high school in Burrillville, only 16.3% have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher, which contributes to the state's 25.6% having a bachelor's degree or higher. As far as employment is concerned, 71% of families in Burrillville have both parents in the work force (U.S. Census, 2000).
Despite all of the town’s fine qualities, the one aspect where Burrillville is found lacking is in diversity. Within the population of Burrillville in 2000, 98.6% was white, 0.2% Black/African American, 0.2% Asian, and 0.8% Hispanic. The entire state of Rhode Island only had only a slightly higher rate of diversity in that 85% of the population was white in 2000, leaving 4.5% Black/African American, 2.3% Asian, and 8.7% Hispanic (U.S. Census, 2000).
Race
Burrillville
Rhode Island
US
White
98.6%
85%
75.1%
Black/ African American
0.2%
4.5%
12.3%
Asian
0.2%
2.3%
3.6%
Hispanic
0.8%
8.7%
12.5%
District Summary
At this time the Burrillville School District has 4,359 students enrolled in grade levels spanning preschool to college. The high school alone cares for 1,099 students (U.S. Census, 2000). Burrillville's student-teacher ratio of 1:11 is in line with that of the state which is 1:10 (Information Works!, 2007). Considering these numbers, the high school enjoys a newly renovated environment that is anything but over crowded. With these numbers, some might wonder how the high school could not be high performing. Only three years ago, Burrillville High School was at a high performing status, but due to the sudden increase in the drop-out rate to 12%, the school has fallen to only moderately performing. The high school only graduates 77.9% of its students on time, as compared to 85.0% by the entire state. On the other hand, the high school enjoys a much higher attendance rate of 94.3% then the rest of the state which is at 89.7% (Information Works!, 2007). Burrillville High School probably has to work harder than other schools, however, in the respect that the diversity level just is not there. Ninety eight percent of the school is white and there are no ESL classes (U.S. Census, 2000).
Most students in Burrillville reported that 59.5% of them had parents living at home compared to the entire United Stated that only has 45% of families that have both parents at home. On top of these statistics, 94.3% of students reported that English was the only language ever spoken at home (U.S. Census, 2000). Throughout the entire district, only 12% of the student population use the disability services (U.S. Census, 2000). It also appears as though Burrillville has a much higher rate of parents involvement over the rest of the state. The district reported that 17% of parents returned the SALT Surveys while only 12% of the surveys were returned throughout the state. Another interesting fact the surveys expressed was that 70% of teachers reported having positive relationships with their students' parents. For the most part, Burrillville students throughout the district are averagely content with their school's climate and the interactions while in school. Some categories that could use some improvement, so stated by the students, are the support provided by the teachers, instructional innovations and variation, and general quality of school life. Although none of these categories are rated especially low, any parent, teacher, or administrator would like to see improvement all the time. (Information Works!, 2007)
SALT Reports:
Burrillville's Student Perceptions on School Environment and Supports
Indicator
Value (scale 1 to 5)
Positive school climate;
overall score
3.1
Teachers provide support
2.9
Clarity of behavior expectations
and rules
3.4
Students show commitments
3.2
Positive student interactions
3.4
Negative student interactions
2.9
Disciplinary harshness
3.1
Instructional innovations and
variation
2.8
General quality of school life
2.8
The Burrillville School District receives funding from federal funds, state funds and local funds. Most of the funding for the district, however, is provided by federal funds. Out of the 36 districts state wide, Burrillville is ranked 22 in total per-pupil expenditure with a total of $10,402 while the average for Rhode Island is $9,903. In 2006, Burrillville's District Operating Budget was $28,166,000. The federal direct aid given to the district for Title 1 and IDEA in total was $923,052, which when broken down is $333 direct aid per student while the average direct aid per student for the state of Rhode Island was $583. (Federal Education Budget Project, 2006).
Within the Burrillville School District, sports play an incredibly significant roll. Besides the after school soccer, basketball, and kickball clubs offered at the elementary level, competitive sports teams begin at the middle school level in grade six. Such sports include boys and girls soccer, cross country, basketball, hockey, boys baseball, boys wrestling, and girls softball teams. Once entering the high school level football, field hockey, and volleyball are all added to the offered sports roster. (Town of Burrillville, 2006)
School Analysis
When it comes to SAT’s, the Burrillville High School students scored higher in both mathematics, and verbal testing than the rest of the state of Rhode Island. Burrillville achieved an average of 517 on mathematics compared to the state which was 501. The verbal scores of 507 also exceeded the state’s that was at 495 (Information Works!, 2007).The results of the 2005 Assessment Results showed that 44% of students in Burrillville achieved the mathematical standard concepts and 70% achieved the standard when it came to basic skills. When it came to problems solving, however, only 40% achieved the standard. Compared to the state of Rhode Island, Burrillville's test scores were low. Overall in the state, 78% achieved the standard of basic mathematical skills, 58% achieved the standard of math concepts and 50% showed adequate problem solving skills. When evaluating English Language Arts standards in both Burrillville and the state, overall the scores were higher than those of mathematics. In Burrillville, 61% achieved the standard in reading basic understanding (61% in the state), 52% achieved the standard for reading analysis and interpretation (60% in the state), 60% achieved the standard for writing effectiveness (60% in the state), and 81% achieved the standard for writing conventions (80% in the state). (Information Works!, 2007). Value-Added Indicators
Percentage of students who met or exceed the standard compared with the percentage of similar students statewide:
Indicator
Burrillvillve
RI Similar Students
Mathematics:
Skills
70%
78%
Concepts
44%
58%
Problem Solving
40%
50%
English Language Arts:
Reading: Basic Understanding
61%
61%
Reading: Analysis and
Interpretation
52%
60%
Writing Effectiveness
60%
60%
Writing Conventions
81%
80%
Another test that Burrillville HIgh School was evaluated on was the NECAP (New England Common Assessment Program) test. On the NECAP test, Burrillville High School students scored 20% proficiency in Mathematics, 64% proficiency in Reading, and 28% proficiency in Writing. When comparing these scores to those of the entire state's, 22% proficiency in Mathematics, 62% proficiency in Reading, and 37% proficiency in Writing, Burrillville performed slightly lower than the overall state. Despite these slightly lacking scores, Burrillville High School did meet the target for the No Child Left Behind Act. The target score for this act that the state wanted all schools to reach was 79.2%, which Burrillville exceeded with a score of 86.7% compared to the entire state's average of 89.2% Although Burrillville is up to par with No Child Left Behind, it has not reached sufficient progress according to the state. Out of 13 areas of evaluation, Burrillville has only met 12 and therefore has been labeled as making insufficient progress. (Information Works!, 2007)
Within the high school consisting of grades nine through twelve, there are 899 students in total. Of these 899 students, little diversity can be found. According to the Public Schools Report there are 3 American Indiana/Alaskan students, 2 Asian/Pacific Islander students, 4 Hispanic students, 1 Black (Non-Hispanic) student, and an overwhelming 889 White (Non-Hispanic) students. Of this population within the high school, 20% of the students are eligible for the subsidized lunch program, no students are recipients for ESL services, and 12% receive special education services for general education with support while 86% are non recipients of any special education services. (Public Schools Report, 2006)
Student Characteristics: Burrillville High School
Indicator
Values
Subsidized Lunch Program
20% eligible
Ethnic Backgrounds
White: 98%; African-American: 1%
Hispanic: 1%
ESL Services
100% non recipients
Special Education Services
General Education with supports: 12%
Non recipients: 86%
Self-contained: 2%
Conclusion
Within this report there has been much information provided about Burrillville as a community, school district, and as an individual high school. This context report would be a great help to any student-teacher search for a school to spend their semester in, any new teachers searching for a school to apply to that fits their preferences, and of course to anyone within the education program at URI searching for some interesting reading about various schools within Rhode Island. I must say that after researching Burrillville and digging into the details of the community, district, and high school, I would not mind being assigned this school for my own student teaching in the future. Overall, Burrillville appears to be a pleasant community that values support and encouragement from all people within the town. After reviewing the data provided in this report, one could generally expect all the test results that were accomplished by the students. Burrillville is an average community that, through tremendous community support, has enabled their students to receive a quality education. It is disappointing to learn, however, that Burrillville High School has not made sufficient progress. Although only missing the evaluations by one point, reaching sufficient progress is a goal that the students and teachers cannot lose sight of. It would seem that Burrillville High School will be able to achieve the High Performance status again sometime in the near future, as the school has a plan in place to raise morale and encourage the students to finish their education (Burrillville School Department, 2004). Their plan requires that parents get involved more and help to encourage their children. I feel that if both the school and the parents step up to the challenge there is no doubt that the school will achieve great things in the future.
References
U.S. Census Bureau. (2000). Burrillville Town. Retrieved October 1, 2008, from http://www.census.gov/
U.S. Census Bureau. (2000). Rhode Island Fact Sheet. Retrieved October 1, 2008, from U.S Census
U.S. Census Bureau. (2000). Burrillville Town, Providence County, Rhode Island. Retrieved October 1, 2008, from U.S Census
Federal Education Budget Project. (2006). Burrillville School District. Retrieved October 3, 2008, from Federal Education Budget Project
Town of Burrillville Rhode Island. (2006). Burrillville Historic Community. Retrieved October 5, 2008, from Burrillville.org
Public Schools Report: Public School Information and Data. (2005-2007). Burrillville High School. Retrieved October 8, 2008, from Public Schools Report
Burrillville School Department. (2004). Burrillville School Department. Retrieved October 5, 2008, from Burrillville School Department
Burrillville High School
Introduction
Burrillville High School, located at 425 East Avenue Harrisville, Rhode Island, is the home to approximately 899 students in grades 9 through 12. Although upon first appearance Burrillville High looks simple and slightly dated, in 2003 the school underwent renovations that transformed the dark and worn interior into a bright, friendly, and stimulating environment. Greeting students, faculty, staff, and visitors entering the building is a fountain in the center of a beautifully colorful garden. Within the garden are plaques engraved with all the names of teachers who have dedicated their careers to the Burrillville school system and have since retired. This garden, besides honoring those who have made contributions to the school and community, serves as a reminder for the students as to how important education is and what can be made of a life filled with hopes, dreams, and the desire to succeed. (Burrillville School Department, 2004).
The contents of this report includes detailed information about Burrillville as a community, the Burrillville school district, and Burrillville High School. The community background portion provides readers with a brief history of the location of Burrillville within Rhode Island, the population and size of the town, average family size and income, and percentages of race and diversity within the town. Under the school district summary one can find information concerning teacher-student ratios, number of students within the district, and various pieces of information about the families within the district compared to families within the state of Rhode Island. The last category, the school analysis, highlights Burrillville student tests scores compared to students throughout Rhode Island. Such tests in comparison include the SATs and the SALT surveys. All of this information, besides being useful for common knowledge and general interest, can be helpful for new teachers searching for a comfortable district, parents looking for the best education for their children, and students acting as student teachers and are seeking information concerning the school they are assigned.
Community Background
The town of Burrillville is located in the most northwest corner of the state of Rhode Island. Burrillville has a total population of 15,796, which is relatively small considering the town is comprised of 58 square miles (U.S. Census, 2000). Compared with the state of Rhode Island, which has a population of 1,057,832 , Burrillville contains 1.49% of the entire state's population (U.S. Census, 2000). The town dates back to the Industrial Revolution and has an extensive history. What was once a mill town has now been transformed into a close-knit community in which many chose to remain once they become adults. (Town of Burillville, 2006)
Burrillville fits the stereotype of most small, rural communities in that many citizens do not experience great wealth, but make enough to live comfortably with reasonable luxuries. The average family income is $58,979 per year and the average family size is 3.15. Burrillville's income rate was low when compared to Rhode Island's average family income rate of $64,733, while Burrillville's average family size is high considering that the average family size of Rhode Island was 3.07 in 2000. When comparing Burrillville's per capita income with that of the state, Burrillville comes up slightly short once again. The per capita income for Burrillville in 1999 was reported as $21,096 while Rhode Island's per capita income in 1999 was higher at $21,688. Although the income rates of Burrillville may be lower than that of the entire state, the rates of families and individuals below poverty level in Burrillville is low when compared to the poverty level within Rhode Island. In Burrillville, 3.7% of families are below poverty level while 7.8% are below level in the state. The individual rate below poverty level within Burrillville rises correspondingly with the rate within Rhode Island showing 6.1% compared to 11.1% respectively. (U.S. Census, 2000)
Income/Poverty Level
Of Burrillville's population that is 18 years or older 80.4% have graduated high school, which exceeds the percentage of the state which comes in with having 78% graduated high school. Of the 80.4% graduated high school in Burrillville, only 16.3% have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher, which contributes to the state's 25.6% having a bachelor's degree or higher. As far as employment is concerned, 71% of families in Burrillville have both parents in the work force (U.S. Census, 2000).
Despite all of the town’s fine qualities, the one aspect where Burrillville is found lacking is in diversity. Within the population of Burrillville in 2000, 98.6% was white, 0.2% Black/African American, 0.2% Asian, and 0.8% Hispanic. The entire state of Rhode Island only had only a slightly higher rate of diversity in that 85% of the population was white in 2000, leaving 4.5% Black/African American, 2.3% Asian, and 8.7% Hispanic (U.S. Census, 2000).
Race
District Summary
At this time the Burrillville School District has 4,359 students enrolled in grade levels spanning preschool to college. The high school alone cares for 1,099 students (U.S. Census, 2000). Burrillville's student-teacher ratio of 1:11 is in line with that of the state which is 1:10 (Information Works!, 2007). Considering these numbers, the high school enjoys a newly renovated environment that is anything but over crowded. With these numbers, some might wonder how the high school could not be high performing. Only three years ago, Burrillville High School was at a high performing status, but due to the sudden increase in the drop-out rate to 12%, the school has fallen to only moderately performing. The high school only graduates 77.9% of its students on time, as compared to 85.0% by the entire state. On the other hand, the high school enjoys a much higher attendance rate of 94.3% then the rest of the state which is at 89.7% (Information Works!, 2007). Burrillville High School probably has to work harder than other schools, however, in the respect that the diversity level just is not there. Ninety eight percent of the school is white and there are no ESL classes (U.S. Census, 2000).
Most students in Burrillville reported that 59.5% of them had parents living at home compared to the entire United Stated that only has 45% of families that have both parents at home. On top of these statistics, 94.3% of students reported that English was the only language ever spoken at home (U.S. Census, 2000). Throughout the entire district, only 12% of the student population use the disability services (U.S. Census, 2000). It also appears as though Burrillville has a much higher rate of parents involvement over the rest of the state. The district reported that 17% of parents returned the SALT Surveys while only 12% of the surveys were returned throughout the state. Another interesting fact the surveys expressed was that 70% of teachers reported having positive relationships with their students' parents. For the most part, Burrillville students throughout the district are averagely content with their school's climate and the interactions while in school. Some categories that could use some improvement, so stated by the students, are the support provided by the teachers, instructional innovations and variation, and general quality of school life. Although none of these categories are rated especially low, any parent, teacher, or administrator would like to see improvement all the time. (Information Works!, 2007)
SALT Reports:
Burrillville's Student Perceptions on School Environment and Supports
overall score
and rules
variation
The Burrillville School District receives funding from federal funds, state funds and local funds. Most of the funding for the district, however, is provided by federal funds. Out of the 36 districts state wide, Burrillville is ranked 22 in total per-pupil expenditure with a total of $10,402 while the average for Rhode Island is $9,903. In 2006, Burrillville's District Operating Budget was $28,166,000. The federal direct aid given to the district for Title 1 and IDEA in total was $923,052, which when broken down is $333 direct aid per student while the average direct aid per student for the state of Rhode Island was $583. (Federal Education Budget Project, 2006).
Within the Burrillville School District, sports play an incredibly significant roll. Besides the after school soccer, basketball, and kickball clubs offered at the elementary level, competitive sports teams begin at the middle school level in grade six. Such sports include boys and girls soccer, cross country, basketball, hockey, boys baseball, boys wrestling, and girls softball teams. Once entering the high school level football, field hockey, and volleyball are all added to the offered sports roster. (Town of Burrillville, 2006)
School Analysis
When it comes to SAT’s, the Burrillville High School students scored higher in both mathematics, and verbal testing than the rest of the state of Rhode Island. Burrillville achieved an average of 517 on mathematics compared to the state which was 501. The verbal scores of 507 also exceeded the state’s that was at 495 (Information Works!, 2007). The results of the 2005 Assessment Results showed that 44% of students in Burrillville achieved the mathematical standard concepts and 70% achieved the standard when it came to basic skills. When it came to problems solving, however, only 40% achieved the standard. Compared to the state of Rhode Island, Burrillville's test scores were low. Overall in the state, 78% achieved the standard of basic mathematical skills, 58% achieved the standard of math concepts and 50% showed adequate problem solving skills. When evaluating English Language Arts standards in both Burrillville and the state, overall the scores were higher than those of mathematics. In Burrillville, 61% achieved the standard in reading basic understanding (61% in the state), 52% achieved the standard for reading analysis and interpretation (60% in the state), 60% achieved the standard for writing effectiveness (60% in the state), and 81% achieved the standard for writing conventions (80% in the state). (Information Works!, 2007).
Value-Added Indicators
Percentage of students who met or exceed the standard compared with the percentage of similar students statewide:
Interpretation
Another test that Burrillville HIgh School was evaluated on was the NECAP (New England Common Assessment Program) test. On the NECAP test, Burrillville High School students scored 20% proficiency in Mathematics, 64% proficiency in Reading, and 28% proficiency in Writing. When comparing these scores to those of the entire state's, 22% proficiency in Mathematics, 62% proficiency in Reading, and 37% proficiency in Writing, Burrillville performed slightly lower than the overall state. Despite these slightly lacking scores, Burrillville High School did meet the target for the No Child Left Behind Act. The target score for this act that the state wanted all schools to reach was 79.2%, which Burrillville exceeded with a score of 86.7% compared to the entire state's average of 89.2% Although Burrillville is up to par with No Child Left Behind, it has not reached sufficient progress according to the state. Out of 13 areas of evaluation, Burrillville has only met 12 and therefore has been labeled as making insufficient progress. (Information Works!, 2007)
Within the high school consisting of grades nine through twelve, there are 899 students in total. Of these 899 students, little diversity can be found. According to the Public Schools Report there are 3 American Indiana/Alaskan students, 2 Asian/Pacific Islander students, 4 Hispanic students, 1 Black (Non-Hispanic) student, and an overwhelming 889 White (Non-Hispanic) students. Of this population within the high school, 20% of the students are eligible for the subsidized lunch program, no students are recipients for ESL services, and 12% receive special education services for general education with support while 86% are non recipients of any special education services. (Public Schools Report, 2006)
Student Characteristics: Burrillville High School
Hispanic: 1%
Non recipients: 86%
Self-contained: 2%
Conclusion
Within this report there has been much information provided about Burrillville as a community, school district, and as an individual high school. This context report would be a great help to any student-teacher search for a school to spend their semester in, any new teachers searching for a school to apply to that fits their preferences, and of course to anyone within the education program at URI searching for some interesting reading about various schools within Rhode Island. I must say that after researching Burrillville and digging into the details of the community, district, and high school, I would not mind being assigned this school for my own student teaching in the future. Overall, Burrillville appears to be a pleasant community that values support and encouragement from all people within the town. After reviewing the data provided in this report, one could generally expect all the test results that were accomplished by the students. Burrillville is an average community that, through tremendous community support, has enabled their students to receive a quality education. It is disappointing to learn, however, that Burrillville High School has not made sufficient progress. Although only missing the evaluations by one point, reaching sufficient progress is a goal that the students and teachers cannot lose sight of. It would seem that Burrillville High School will be able to achieve the High Performance status again sometime in the near future, as the school has a plan in place to raise morale and encourage the students to finish their education (Burrillville School Department, 2004). Their plan requires that parents get involved more and help to encourage their children. I feel that if both the school and the parents step up to the challenge there is no doubt that the school will achieve great things in the future.
ReferencesU.S. Census Bureau. (2000). Burrillville Town. Retrieved October 1, 2008, from http://www.census.gov/
U.S. Census Bureau. (2000). Rhode Island Fact Sheet. Retrieved October 1, 2008, from
U.S Census
U.S. Census Bureau. (2000). Burrillville Town, Providence County, Rhode Island. Retrieved October 1, 2008, from
U.S Census
Federal Education Budget Project. (2006). Burrillville School District. Retrieved October 3, 2008, from
Federal Education Budget Project
Federal Education Budget Project. (2006). Rhode Island. Retrieved October 3, 2008, from
Federal Education Budget Project
Town of Burrillville Rhode Island. (2006). Burrillville Historic Community. Retrieved October 5, 2008, from Burrillville.org
Public Schools Report: Public School Information and Data. (2005-2007). Burrillville High School. Retrieved October 8, 2008, from Public Schools Report
Burrillville School Department. (2004). Burrillville School Department. Retrieved October 5, 2008, from Burrillville School Department
Information Works! (2007). School Reports: Burrillville District, Burrillville High School. Retrieved October 5, 2008, From http://www.infoworks.ride.uri.edu/2008/queries/FindSch.asp
CR Eval Ariana by Andrea M
CR Evaluation by Matt Guertin